


The Wrong Smile

by Lucky107



Series: San Antonio Rose [2]
Category: Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Gen, Murder, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-14
Updated: 2016-08-14
Packaged: 2018-08-08 19:12:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7769749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lucky107/pseuds/Lucky107
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Virginia blows into town on a hot afternoon like an old tumbleweed on the road to New Vegas.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Wrong Smile

**Author's Note:**

> It's All Right With Me - Frank Sinatra - 1960

Novac is a dirty little shit stain town - a mess of half-submerged roadways and crumbling shacks in the middle of the desert that wouldn't even have a name if it weren't for that weathered vacancy sign standing in front of the hotel.  Virginia blows into town on a hot afternoon like an old tumbleweed on the road to New Vegas.

And she looks even worse than the town, with her windblown hair and dusty, torn-up caravan rags.  She's lucky she's not mistaken for a ghoul and shot with her shambling posture.

Virginia all but collapses against the white-washed concrete of the welcome center, relishing in what shade the awning provides.  And that's the first time she meets Jeannie May Crawford, rounding that corner with surprise in her beady little eyes.  The frail old woman selflessly takes Virginia in from the road without question, nursing her back to health.

She would have left Novac in the dust had she not been approached by a large and intimidating fellow the minute she walked out of the welcome center.

He called himself 'Craig Boone' and he was a sniper, or so he said.

Virginia had no reason to doubt him.

Boone would never have thought to interfere with Virginia had there not been something so remarkably familiar about her.  She was weathered from her time on the road, but she was elegant and carried herself like she didn't belong in the desert.  She reminded him of _her_.

So instead of ignoring Virginia like the rest of the town, Boone finds himself _fearing_ what might happen to her if he doesn't request: "I need you to find someone."

It sounds so crass - so impersonal - on his lips that he's surprised when Virginia agrees.

Virginia can hear the shot whistle by when she throws her hand into the air, waving that crimson fabric like a flag.  All it takes is a single bullet and the way he puts that shot clean through Jeannie May's forehead, a single piece of steel slicing through the flesh like a block of cheese, puts the entire world into perspective.

For both of them.

And that's the last time Virginia sees Jeannie May Crawford, now a spray of blood splashed hot across her pale cheek.  A quick glance up at the towering dinosaur reveals the perch is empty.

Boone moves like a shadow on his way out of town, meeting with Virginia by the body.  "It's over," he confirms.  "How did you know...?"

Forcefully, she presses the red beret into his chest.  "You don't—"

"I do."  Boone's voice is sharp, almost accusatory, in an attempt to intimidate Virginia.  When that doesn't work, he amends his tone by adding a softer, "I _need_ to know."

"I found the bill of sale," she relents, producing the slip of paper from a pocket on her apron.

Once Boone has given the receipt a proper once-over, he digs for a fistful of caps only to be met with resistance; Virginia pushes his hand away sternly.

"That's not how this works," she insists.  "You _owe_ me."

And he would have argued with her if he didn't see Carla - fiery and stubborn - staring back at him in her eyes.


End file.
